As one of new types of high-power and high-energy density rechargeable batteries, a rechargeable lithium battery has been recently utilized which is charged and discharged by the transfer of lithium ions through a nonaqueous electrolyte solution between the positive and negative electrodes.
For such a rechargeable lithium battery, a negative electrode has been proposed which comprises silicon-containing active material adhered by a binder onto a current collector having an average roughness of at least 0.03 μm (Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2000-12088).
It is however known that the silicon-containing active material is powdered or delaminated from the current collector during charge and discharge because the silicon-containing active material expands and shrinks in volume when it stores and releases lithium. This lowers the current-collecting capacity and accordingly deteriorates charge-discharge cycle performance characteristics, which has been a problem.